Spring cleaning gets all the attention, according to finance expert Rachel Cruze, but in a recent video, she proposed another seasonal habit worth adopting: “a fall reset.”
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Of course, Cruze isn’t talking about organizing your closets. This reset is largely financial, though it can apply to any area of your life. With kids heading back to school and the holiday season on the horizon, she said it’s the perfect time for a “fresh start” before year’s end.
It’s also a chance to clean up any bad habits picked up over the summer or to reset goals you may have drifted away from earlier in the year.
Here’s how Cruze recommended going about it.
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Get Back on Budget
Cruze is the first to admit that everyone falls off their goals and budget plans, herself included.
But, she emphasized, “Getting back on track and knowing where your paycheck is going [will] help you so much.” In a time when high prices are sticking around and tariff-driven cost increases are showing up, staying on top of your spending is even more essential.
“I firmly believe that budgeting is one of the non-negotiables when it comes to winning with money. So that needs to be a part of your plan,” she said.
Cruze prefers using the EveryDollar budgeting app, but ultimately, the best tool is the one you’ll actually use.
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Review What’s Changed
Part of the reset involves reviewing your budget with fresh eyes to identify patterns that have been “consistent for months and months and months.”
Cleaning up even a few bad spending habits, she said, not only saves money but feels good because you’re back in control.
Reevaluate Your Budget Needs
Don’t just revert to your old budget — things may have changed since you last looked. Cruze recommended reevaluating big goals for saving, spending and investing to ensure they’re still realistic.
If you overshot, now is a great time to recalibrate. “So, if last January you set out to save $1,000 a month, but are only saving half of that, you adjust your goal so that you know it can be achieved,” she said.
“Change some things, [but] be realistic about it, because we’re halfway through the year.”
Clear Your Data
Another surprising way to reset? Remove your personal data from the internet. Cruze recommended using a service like Delete Me to wipe your information from sketchy data broker sites.
She warned that your personal info is basically “like a billboard with your name, your address, your email, even your kids’ names … on sketchy data broker websites.”
These companies sell your data for money and increase your risk for scams and fraud.
Plan for Remaining Expenses
Cruze also suggested planning ahead for all the remaining expenses in the year, especially those that creep up fast.
Think: back-to-school shopping, Labor Day trips or parties and the long stretch of holidays from Halloween to New Year’s Eve. “The last half of the year just flies,” she warned.
She said, ask yourself: “What are line items [I] need to add to the budget so that we can be saving month after month to prepare for these things?”
Re-Engage Routines
Lastly, Cruze advised reengaging with routines that may have slipped during summer, whether that’s bedtimes, screen time or impulse spending.
For her own family, one habit that often falls by the wayside is meal planning. They end up ordering pizza instead of making something more affordable, she admitted.
Getting back into routines, she said, sets you up to make better decisions with your money and your time.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Rachel Cruze’s Midyear Money Reset
